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Cal. Prob. Code § 9100(a) · checked 2026-10-20
How long probate takes in California
The longest fixed wait in a California probate is usually the creditor claim period: 4 months from the date letters are first issued to a general personal representative under Cal. Prob. Code § 9100(a), or 60 days after notice of administration is mailed or delivered to the creditor, whichever is later. An estate cannot be closed safely before that window shuts.
- 1Claim period 4 months
- 2Counted from Notice / letters
- 3Outer limit None stated
- 4Statute Cal. Prob. Code § 9100(a)
The statute
“Four months after the date letters are first issued to a general personal representative”
Source: Cal. Prob. Code § 9100(a) (read from the Public.Law copy: copy). Last checked 2026-10-20.
Worked example: a death on January 15, 2026
| Checkpoint | Date |
|---|---|
| Date of death | January 15, 2026 |
| Earliest affidavit for collection of personal property (40 days, Cal. Prob. Code § 13100) | February 24, 2026 |
| Trigger: the date letters are first issued to a general personal representative | March 1, 2026 |
| Creditor claim period ends (4 months, Cal. Prob. Code § 9100(a)) | July 1, 2026 |
California starts the clock at the date letters are first issued to a general personal representative, so the end date moves with the court. The example assumes that event comes 45 days after the death (March 1, 2026); a later filing pushes July 1, 2026 back day for day. By comparison the small-estate route — when the estate fits — opens on February 24, 2026.
15 jurisdictions on this site give creditors longer and 8 give them less; the median is 122 days.
Steps that add time
- Getting appointed. Nothing runs until the date letters are first issued to a general personal representative; the time between the death and the petition is outside the statutory period.
- Notice. Published notice and notice mailed to known creditors start or shorten the claim period; a creditor who should have been mailed notice may get extra time — here, or 60 days after notice of administration is mailed or delivered to the creditor, whichever is later.
- Real estate. California has a separate real-property procedure; see the small estate page.
- Accounting and closing. The final account, receipts from heirs and any tax filings come after the claim period ends.
Nearby Pacific timelines
Alaska: 4 months; Oregon: 4 months; Washington: 4 months.
Related: California small estate limit · creditor claim periods compared · executor timeline.
General information from the statute as written on 2026-10-20; not legal advice. Dates are worked examples of the statutory periods, not deadlines for any real estate. The California probate court and its clerk can confirm how the periods run in a given case.